Should I be eating more calories???

jessicabailey529
jessicabailey529 Posts: 28 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Currently I’m working off of a 1200 calorie diet. I’ve been eating 5 times a day, and the caloric intake is around 200 calories each time. I’ve been ranging between 1000-1200 calories. Really sticking to it, really doing well with it. I’ve been exercising about 5-6 days a week, including Zumba. Really busting my butt here. In January I lost 13 pounds.. But I feel like I go two step forwards, one step back, two steps forward, one step back. I feel like I’m missing something because it’s not coming off steadily.

Someone suggested that I’m not eating enough calories. If I’m burning 800 in a zumba class for an hour, then I should be eating more. I don’t think Bob Harper would be sitting in front of me telling me to eat more, I just don’t think that it makes sense.

Thoughts? I need help with this one. If I really just have to eat more, that’s fine, I will. My BMR is also calculated at 1600 if that helps anyone to understand. I can boost the calories to 5 meals of 300 calories if I need to or just push more protein and fiber.
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Replies

  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    There's no way of knowing for sure without knowing more about you.

    How tall are you?
    How much do you weigh?
    More importantly, what's your TDEE and your BMR?

    Generally speaking, people who exercise regularly should NOT be limiting themselves to 1200 calories. I work a desk job, exercise very little (compared to you), and eat around 1900 a day for weight loss. That's because my BMR is about 1800 and my TDEE is about 2500. You should eat between BMR and TDEE for the most effective weight loss.
  • Controversial
    Controversial Posts: 157 Member
    Yes.
  • jessicabailey529
    jessicabailey529 Posts: 28 Member
    I'm 5' 7", I currently weight 184. My goal weight is 150. My BMR is 1600. My TDEE is 2800
  • misssiri
    misssiri Posts: 335 Member
    Yes, eat more.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    I'm 5' 7", I currently weight 184. My goal weight is 150. My BMR is 1600. My TDEE is 2800

    Wow, with a TDEE of 2800 you should be eating more like 2240 (80% of TDEE of 2800), this will result in slightly more than 1 lb/week, which is a healthy pace with the amount you have to lose.
  • ladyraven68
    ladyraven68 Posts: 2,003 Member
    I'm 5' 7", I currently weight 184. My goal weight is 150. My BMR is 1600. My TDEE is 2800

    For most people who want to lose fat and maintain lean mass, they take 10-20% from their TDEE, work out, and eat sufficient protein.

    larger deficts can result in losing lean a larger % of lean muscle than smaller deficts.

    if your calculations are right, your defict is currently almost 60%.

    You could be losing weight at eating between 1800 and 2300 calories, there is no need to go as low as 1200.
  • jessicabailey529
    jessicabailey529 Posts: 28 Member
    so would all of these things be factoring in as to why I've only lost 13 in 30 days? With the amount of exercise, etc I think i should be losing more.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
    If you're really burning that many calories when you exercise, yes, eat more (don't rely on website estimates or even an HRM %100 to tell you what you really are burning, though).

    I don't always eat mine back but I usually only burn around 200 a session and except for work outs I'm totally sedentary. People in active jobs or people walking a lot-such as students crossing campus back and forth for classes-need to eat more even if they don't exercise. Taller, younger people need to eat more than short old people like me, too.

    Also no matter what we do, weight loss isn't linear. Some days or weeks you'll lose slower, some days or weeks faster. Stall outs also will happen but keep doing things right and you will start losing again.
  • jessicabailey529
    jessicabailey529 Posts: 28 Member
    at least three times a week I'm doing zumba which burns 750-800 calories per session. The other days, I'm working the arc trainer which is burning 330-350.

    I don't want to eat more calories unless it's going to help me lose them.
  • jessicabailey529
    jessicabailey529 Posts: 28 Member
    Holy crap, contrats to you!!! 95 pounds lost? That's amazing!!! How long have you been working at that?
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    You do need to eat more, but are you eating back your exercise calories currently?

    I can pretty much guarantee you that you aren't burning 800 calories an hour in Zumba. If you're eating back exercise cals that might be offsetting the fact that you're base target intake is so low.
  • Rhozelyn
    Rhozelyn Posts: 201 Member
    I'm 5' 7", I currently weight 184. My goal weight is 150. My BMR is 1600. My TDEE is 2800

    I am older than you but we have the same stats almost. The only question I have for you is "how long can you keep going like this?".....I would struggle to keep my calories under 1200...So I am still eating quite a lot of food and lost 9 lb with less work and more food.
  • MaraDiaz
    MaraDiaz Posts: 4,604 Member
    Holy crap, contrats to you!!! 95 pounds lost? That's amazing!!! How long have you been working at that?

    Thanks! I've been on MFP since November of 2011, but I haven't always been consistent. I've had bad weeks and even bad months.

    The thing about eating more is, you can workout harder and longer if you fuel your body properly. You can also feel better the rest of the day. Personally If I go under 1200 on any day I am one mean, fatigued, dizzy, foggy headed human. And many days I need 1200 plus at least some of my exercise calories back.

    One issue, especially for people drinking as much coffee as I do is that we don't feel hunger the same as others. But our body still tells us when it's time to eat in other ways. Irritability and fatigue are my signs to add more calories on a particular day regardless of whether I even worked out at all.
  • Davina_JH
    Davina_JH Posts: 473 Member
    I just upped mine to 1640.
    Use this:
    http://www.iifym.com/tdee-calculator

    :drinker:
  • jessifreehugs
    jessifreehugs Posts: 81 Member
    I've lost all of my weight eating between 1500 and 1800 calories per day. If I exercise, I eat back most of my calories. I'd suggest trying to eat a few hundred extra calories per day, and get a heart rate monitor to make sure that you really are burning what you think you're burning. The MFP estimates can be wildly off. For example, if I put in that I did circuit training for 30 minutes, it says I burned over 300, but my HRM says I only burned around 200...big difference.

    Also, don't be disappointed in a 13 pound loss. That's AMAZING progress for 1 month of work! Good job so far, and just keep doing what your doing with maybe a few small adjustments :)
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
    I'm 5' 7", I currently weight 184. My goal weight is 150. My BMR is 1600. My TDEE is 2800

    I am older than you but we have the same stats almost. The only question I have for you is "how long can you keep going like this?".....I would struggle to keep my calories under 1200...So I am still eating quite a lot of food and lost 9 lb with less work and more food.

    I wholeheartedly agree with this. My biggest misconception when I started trying to lose weight was that the less I ate, the more and faster I would lose. Sure, you'll lose a bunch of weight at first, but you'll crash and burn pretty quickly, start to have a terrible relationship with food, stop being able to have fun with friends, etc.

    I'm 5'8" and I started at 175. I lost almost 30lbs by eating anywhere from 1400-1700 cals per day and 5-6 days a week of exercise (usually a 250-500 cal burn). I've had bad days/weekends/weeks so if I was perfect every day, it wouldn't have taken me 8 months, but I am human! I love all food, "good" and "bad", and if I want something "bad", I'm going to have it but will do my best to plan for it.

    In sum, eat more, exercise (you already are and that's awesome!), and set your calories at something you can live with.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    so would all of these things be factoring in as to why I've only lost 13 in 30 days? With the amount of exercise, etc I think i should be losing more.

    What, what do you mean only 13lbs in 30days? that is actually a very fast loss, faster than it should be essentially you have lost 12 lbs in 4 weeks weeks, which is 3lbs/week, when based on your stats you should be aiming for and losing only 1lb/week.

    Losing faster is not better, the faster your loss the more likely you are to gain it back, have loose skin, and a larger % of your loss will come from lean muscle, than if you lost slower.
  • BeachGingerOnTheRocks
    BeachGingerOnTheRocks Posts: 3,927 Member
    Currently I’m working off of a 1200 calorie diet. I’ve been eating 5 times a day, and the caloric intake is around 200 calories each time. I’ve been ranging between 1000-1200 calories. Really sticking to it, really doing well with it. I’ve been exercising about 5-6 days a week, including Zumba. Really busting my butt here. In January I lost 13 pounds.. But I feel like I go two step forwards, one step back, two steps forward, one step back. I feel like I’m missing something because it’s not coming off steadily.

    Someone suggested that I’m not eating enough calories. If I’m burning 800 in a zumba class for an hour, then I should be eating more. I don’t think Bob Harper would be sitting in front of me telling me to eat more, I just don’t think that it makes sense.

    Thoughts? I need help with this one. If I really just have to eat more, that’s fine, I will. My BMR is also calculated at 1600 if that helps anyone to understand. I can boost the calories to 5 meals of 300 calories if I need to or just push more protein and fiber.

    Weight doesn't come off at a steady rate. Two steps forward, one step back is still one step forward. Keep doing what you're doing because you're succeeding.
  • Txnurse97
    Txnurse97 Posts: 275 Member
    I think you've gotten some good advice. I would also say to eat more. And 13 pounds in 30 days is AMAZING! Give yourself some credit!
  • mareeee1234
    mareeee1234 Posts: 674 Member
    OKAY, PLEASE watch this vide!

    Figure out your TDEE and BMR. If you wanna lose weight, subtract 20% from your TDEE. When you exercise, eat enough calories back so that you're eating AT LEAST your BMR! If your BMR is 1600, you need to NET at LEAST 1600 every day!


    This video explains it well... pleeassee pleasee watch to understand how it works!! :flowerforyou:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYi9xjIRvbY
  • tiffanylacourse
    tiffanylacourse Posts: 2,986 Member
    so would all of these things be factoring in as to why I've only lost 13 in 30 days? With the amount of exercise, etc I think i should be losing more.

    "ONLY" 13# in 30 days? Most people struggle for a 5# loss in 30 days! Consider yourself lucky! :smile:

    Also, please remember you'll always lose faster at first, then the weight loss will slow down. You'll have a loss some weeks and a gain other weeks, but as long as you have a losing trend, that is what matters. You wanna do this the healthy way so that it is a long term lifestyle change and not just a diet! :flowerforyou:
  • krissynicole787
    krissynicole787 Posts: 121 Member
    I have been eating a majority of my exercise calories but i gained from it. I need to stick to 1200-1300. Trial and error. See what works for you.

    But, 13 lbs in one month is a lot.
  • sandradev1
    sandradev1 Posts: 786 Member
    YES,

    MFP's lowest setting it gives without giving a warning for under eating, is 1200 calories without exercise taken into account. If you read the instructions given for using the site properly, you will see that you should be eating back the calories you have been burning doing your Zumba classes.

    Now I know that you will probably think that does not make sense, as you are doing it to lose weight then consider the following two points

    a. MFP has already calculated you a healthy calorie deficit in the 1200 calorie goal. Not eating back exercise calories is creating an even steeper deficit which is extremely unhealthy for your body, and;

    b. Calorie deficit = weight loss........................exercise = fitness
  • XXXMinnieXXX
    XXXMinnieXXX Posts: 3,459 Member
    800 seems high for Zumba at your weight. Maybe look at eating half back of what you think your burning... See how you feel and see how your losses go. Give it 6 weeks your body may freak out at first... Hold your nerve. That would put you at around 1600 which sounds good to me.

    If your hungry eat more. If your feeling weak... Eat more. Listen to your body. Can't go wrong if you do that in my opinion.

    Zara x
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    13 pounds in a month is a lot of weight loss. I'm not sure why you think that's low.
  • tenegirl
    tenegirl Posts: 2
    Ummm, I'm new here, was just reading some of these comments. What the heck is a TDEE? I think I know what BMR is. Is that Basic Metabolic Rate? And if so, how do you find it?
  • jessicabailey529
    jessicabailey529 Posts: 28 Member
    I'm not eating back my calories regardless of the zumba calories. So even if i'm not burning the 750 like the calculator told me I was, I'm still not eating them back.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    Ummm, I'm new here, was just reading some of these comments. What the heck is a TDEE? I think I know what BMR is. Is that Basic Metabolic Rate? And if so, how do you find it?

    http://lmgtfy.com/?q=TDEE
  • paintedpixie
    paintedpixie Posts: 8
    I would say eat more. 13lbs in one month is amazing. But generally weight loss (especially if you did a complete lifestyle overhaul) will slow after the initial loss period and will become more of a steady 1-2 lbs a week or less. I have found that even my increasing my calories for a week or so (you may gain a poundish) and then cutting back I will lose steadily again. Even having a weekend of less than perfect eating can kick start your metabolism sometimes. 1200 calories is the bottom of the bucket minimum you should eat. With your activity level you would likely need more calories. Too few calories on a regular basis, especially if you are active, can cause your body to go into starvation mode and make it much harder to lose. Good luck and I hope you find what works for you in the long run.
  • tiffanylacourse
    tiffanylacourse Posts: 2,986 Member
    I'm not eating back my calories regardless of the zumba calories. So even if i'm not burning the 750 like the calculator told me I was, I'm still not eating them back.

    This is your problem. You need to eat back your exercise calories. (AT LEAST 1/2 of them if you're guessing on your calories burned).

    According to your weight, height, and age - your BMR is approximately 1600. That is the ABSOLUTE MINIMUM you should ever eat. It is what your body needs just to make your heart pump and to breathe if you do nothing by lay in bed all day. Therefore, you shouldn't be eating less than this under any circumstance.

    Your TDEE is aproximately 2232 with exercise 1-3 times a week. Take 15% (335) away from this and you get the amount you should eat daily. This is about 1897. Therefore, your NET calories should be between 1600-1900 daily.

    Therefore:

    Say you're aiming to eat 1900 calories on the days you are working out and then you burn 750 calories in your workout. You take 1900 - 750 = 1150. This is TOO LOW. You need to eat back AT LEAST 450 calories just to NET what your body needs to function.

    I hope this helps and doesn't confuse you even more. Please feel free to friend request me or message me if you have questions! :flowerforyou:

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